Cooling the Fire: An Art Exercise to Calm Anger
Anger is a natural emotion, often signaling that something is wrong or needs to change. But when it burns too hot or lingers too long, it can cloud judgment, strain relationships, and harm both mental and physical health. Rather than suppressing anger or acting on it immediately, creative expression offers a healthy release valve. This easy art exercise can be done at home with just a pen and paper, helping transform fiery energy into something steady, grounded, and reflective.
The Exercise: “Coloring the Storm”
What you need:
- A pen or pencil
- Colored pencils, markers, crayons, or anything with color
- A sheet of blank paper
- 15–20 minutes and a private space
How to do it:
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Start by drawing a big scribble in the middle of your paper. Let it represent how your anger feels—tight, sharp, explosive, chaotic. Don’t overthink it—just go with your gut.
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Look at your scribble and imagine it as a storm. Ask yourself: What color is this emotion?
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Begin coloring in the scribble with whatever colors match your mood—don’t worry about neatness or making it pretty. Just fill the space.
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As you fill in the scribble, slowly expand beyond it. Choose softer, cooler colors as you move outward—blues, greens, light purples. This part symbolizes the calming process.
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Focus your attention on how the colors shift, how your hand moves, and how the storm becomes surrounded by calm.
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Keep breathing deeply as you draw, and pause if needed to observe how your body feels.
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When you're done, take a final moment to look at the whole image. No judgment—just notice how it changed and how you feel.
Why It Works: The Psychology of Art and Anger
This exercise uses externalization—a proven therapeutic technique where emotions are moved from the inside to the outside. By giving your anger shape and color, you symbolically distance yourself from it, reducing its emotional intensity. This helps the prefrontal cortex (the part of your brain responsible for reasoning and decision-making) re-engage, after being hijacked by the amygdala, which drives emotional reactions like anger.
The initial scribble releases energy quickly and safely, mimicking the cathartic effect of venting, but in a non-destructive form. As you move into color and slow, deliberate motions, your body begins to shift from a fight-or-flight state into a rest-and-digest state, engaging the parasympathetic nervous system.
Color psychology also plays a role: warm colors (red, orange) can express intensity, while cool colors (blue, green) promote calmness. Moving from one to the other visually and physically mimics the emotional transition you’re trying to achieve.
Finally, art-making supports emotional regulation—a key factor in managing anger. A study by Drake & Winner (2013) showed that expressive art activities helped individuals understand and manage strong emotions more effectively, even in the long term.
The goal isn’t to erase anger—it’s to acknowledge it, express it, and then create space for clarity and calm. With practice, this small ritual can become a powerful pause button during intense moments.
So there you are! Give it a go and let me know! If you're pleased with the outcome, feel free to reach out online and send me a copy, and if you're happy for me to share then let me know, as I'll be creating an online gallery down the line :)
This post is a collaborative effort between AI and myself in order to provide the most up to date information.
